YALE (US)—Mountain birds at greatest risk of extinction due to global warming are those that occupy the most narrow altitude range, new research finds.

In fact, a species’ vertical distribution is a better predictor of extinction risk than the extent of temperature change they experience.

“Birds allow us to do the first global assessment of the health of a whole large chunk of biodiversity at high altitudes in the face of global warming,” explains Walter Jetz, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at Yale University and co-author of the study along with colleague Frank La Sorte.

“High-elevation species are essentially living on islands where every incremental increase in temperature is dramatically shrinking. Our global projections pinpoint hundreds of bird species in peril and often with nowhere to go.”

As temperatures warm, scientists have found that mountain species respond by shifting to higher and cooler elevations.

The vulnerability of mountain species to climate change can be estimated by looking at a variety of factors, including the birds’ ability to move to higher elevations or to neighboring mountain systems.

Jetz and La Sorte studied all one thousand species of birds living in high-elevation environments and then assessed how the distribution of these species across the mountain systems of the world coincided with projected temperature changes.

Under a scenario where the range of temperatures contract and species are unable to shift their ranges to higher elevations, a full third of mountain bird species were severely threatened.

When species have the option to shift their ranges to higher elevations, the number of mountain bird species threatened is halved, with species located on the tallest mountain systems receiving the greatest benefits.
While some species can move to neighboring mountains, bird species on isolated mountain systems were the most threatened.

The study highlights Africa, Australia, and North America as regions of particular concern for mountain biodiversity, where dispersal opportunities overall are the most limited.

Besides offering another call for action to prevent global warming, La Sorte and Jetz say the study suggests that more effort should be placed on documenting species’ vertical distributions and placing reserves in highland locations and along key elevational corridors to promote new habitat opportunities for mountain species.

“Understanding the biological consequences of climate change is one of the most pressing scientific challenges of our day,” La Sorte says.

“This is particularly true for mountains and the species that inhabit them, which are considered to be especially susceptible to climate change.”